Special Olympics Golfers Find a World of Keen Competition in Denmark

Twenty-one skilled golfers from eight countries competed for the first Special Olympics World Golf Cup at one of Denmark's oldest golf courses, the Helsingor Golf Club. Special Olympics always matches players of similar abilities for competitions, but these 21 players were so good that it took a world invitational to give them all the thrilling play they love.

Golfer Samu Alander of Finland was among 21 Special Olympics golfers from around the world who competed in the World Golf Cup tournament.

A Gathering of the Best Players

The three days of competition were held at Helsingor Golf Club in Denmark. Thirty employees of the golf club volunteered in support of the World Golf Cup.

Many Special Olympics golfers worldwide are very skilled, and they look forward to the chance to compete against equally skilled players. So Special Olympics Denmark and Helsingør Golf Club took this initiative to invite the very best players to compete in early August 2014.

The invitational tournament was played 4 August to 6 August. The format for the cup was be an individual 3 x 18 hole
stroke play competition and also a net-competition based on the players actual golf handicaps.

This was the first Special Olympics world competition, but tournament organizers hope it will catch on as an ongoing event.

All Special Olympics events are made possible by the work of volunteers and the donations of individuals and organizations who support the Special Olympics mission. The World Golf Cup was supported by The Konventum Congress Center, who sponsored the accommodation of players;, Spar Nord Bank; The Solar Foundation; the municipality of Helsingør; a member of the golf club who donated $10,000.

A Fantastic Finish

When the final round started it was almost certain that the fight for the Cup would be between three athletes – America's Scott Rohrer, Tom Lugg from South Africa and Denmark's Troels Hoejbjerre. Both Troels and Scott had some good rounds before final day and they tied for first place four strokes ahead of Tom Lugg.

The final round started tough for Scott with a drive out of bounds and a frustrating triple bogey but he kept on fighting. He could soon feel that silver medal being threatened from behind by a very focused Tom Lugg. Tom was playing well especially on the back nine which he played in par. With four holes to go Troels was still up with five strokes but three bogeys by Troels and pars from Tom made it a very exciting finish.

Tom did his best with one more par but Troels Højbjerre was victorious in the end in front of a very enthusiastic home crowd.

An Opportunity for Strong Compeition

Special Olympics offers 32 Olympic-style sports in 170 countries. One important aspect of the Special Olympics approach to sports is matching our athletes with others of the same ability to promote fair and competitive sports. The 21 golfers were all exceptionally good players, so this tournament was a rare opportunity for them to compete against other Special Olympics athletes of similar ability.

There was also a separate Unified Sports competition during the tournament. A team match with 21 teams that mix people with and without intellectual abilities include professional players, former golf champions, sponsors, junior players from the club and board members from the Danish Golf Federation. Each team included one Special Olympics player.

Players

Tom Lugg of South Africa

Joshua Trollip of South Africa

Konrad Zastrau of South Africa

Andrew White of South Africa

Ahmad Rahman of USA

Joel Murray of USA

Scott Rohrer of USA

Danny Peaslee of Canada

Alejandro Batlle of Dominican Republic

Alexander Forsman of Sweden

Jesper Gutke of Sweden

Magnus Johnsson of Sweden

Patric Bolin of Sweden

Tom Erik Petersen of Denmark

Troels Højbjerre of Denmark

Jacob Milner Jensen of Denmark

Duncan Newall of Great Britain

Alistair Hay of Great Britain

David Mitchell of Great Britain

Ville Lipsanen of Finland

Samu Alander of Finland

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